The present invention relates generally to cabinetry for electronic devices such as projection televisions (PTVs) and, more particularly, to expanded foam cabinetry that facilitates lower manufacturing costs, lighter product weight, lower transportation costs, and simpler product assembly, while maintaining structural integrity.
PTVs or xe2x80x9cbig screenxe2x80x9d TVs are a popular alternative to picture tube TVs because they provide comparably larger viewable screens that cannot be efficiently produced using conventional picture tubes. PTV cabinets are presently designed to hold electrical and optical components as required to decipher and project a television picture on a screen generally on the front of the cabinet. The most common PTV on the market today projects pictures created via appropriate electrical and optical components onto a mirror within a box containing the entire apparatus so that the picture reflected to a screen is as large as possible for the volume occupied by the cabinet enclosing it. PTV screens typically range in size from about 45 to about 73 inches along their diagonal, while the cabinets typically range in size from about 48 inches to over 65 inches in height, from about 38 inches to over 65 inches in width, and from about 22 inches to over 29 inches in depth. The cabinets are assembled in an aesthetically appealing manner as required to hold the electrical components, light generator(s), and lenses, mirror and screen in the relationship required to obtain the desired televised picture.
Most PTVs marketed today include a cabinet constructed from multiple pieces of particleboard cut and glued together. Some cabinets also have plastic components held to the basic cabinet structure with screws or other fasteners. The number of plastic components and particleboard pieces needed to form such cabinets typically range in excess of fifty (50) pieces. As a result, these cabinets tend to be quite complicated and costly to assemble. Because of the size of PTVs, and the particleboard from which the cabinets are typically constructed, PTVs tend to be quite heavy and difficult to maneuver, and, as a result, tend to be costly to transport.
Alternative methods of manufacture are available that may reduce the overall weight of these cabinets and also the number of components necessary to construct such cabinets. For instance, injection molding could be used to form such cabinets out of plastic. However, because of the complexity of the mold needed to accommodate the high operating pressures (typically 300-500 psi) that the mold is subjected to during the injection process, injection molding these cabinets tends to be costly and time consuming. The injection mold for such cabinets is likely to cost in the range of about one million to one and one-half million dollars and likely to take up to twenty (20) weeks or more to design and manufacture. Because of the high costs and long lead times, injection molding is a less than desirable alternative to conventional methods.
Another alternative would be to vacuum form the cabinetry out of plastic. Although attractive from a tooling cost standpoint, vacuum forming has its drawbacks. Vacuum forming tends to result in inconsistent material cross-sections, high material waste and high labor costs.
Thus, it would be desirable to provide cabinetry for electronic devices such as PTVs, and for other storage applications, that is easy to manufacture, that reduces the weight of end products, that reduces manufacturing and transportation costs, and that is resilient and structurally sound for the particular application.
The present invention is directed to cabinetry for a variety of storage applications and, more particularly to cabinetry for electronic devices such as PTVs that, when compared to conventional cabinetry, tends to be simpler to manufacture, lighter in weight, less costly to manufacture and transport, and easier to handle. Although significantly lighter in weight, the structural integrity of the cabinetry of the present invention tends to be comparable to conventional cabinetry. In a particularly innovative aspect, the cabinetry of the present invention utilizes molded plastic foam formed from expanded polystyrene or phenolic foam that is sandwiched between coatings of an appropriate structural material such as plastic to form the desired cabinet or cabinet component. Preferably, a coating of urethane may be sprayed onto the surface of the foam parts to provide a resilient and cosmetically appealing surface finish to the foam parts. The foam parts are preferably functionally designed to replace the equivalent parts presently being made by wood fabrication or other molded plastic techniques.
In a preferred embodiment, a PTV cabinet of the present invention may be assembled from three matching cabinet components formed from the preferred sandwich structure comprising expanded polystyrene and structural coatings. The foam parts are preferably fastened to a generally flat base formed from wood, particleboard, concrete or some other appropriate material. An external cabinet or cosmetic fascia part formed from injection molded or extruded plastic, or particle board, may be placed over the foam parts and fastened to the base to hold the assembly together.
In another innovative aspect, the foam parts in accordance with the present invention may be uniquely located with respect to one another via locating features molded into the foam parts.
In another innovative aspect, the foam parts in accordance with the present invention include mirror-capturing members adapted to capture the mirror of the PTV upon assembly of the foam parts.
In yet another innovative aspect, a PTV cabinet in accordance with the present invention may be formed as a unitary member from the preferred sandwich structure comprising expanded polystyrene and fastened to a base assembly comprising a base platform and a speaker panel fastened thereto.
Other innovative aspects of the invention include the preceding aspects individually or in combination.
Other aspects and features of the present invention will become apparent from consideration of the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.